[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 13]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 18415]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   TRIBUTE TO WENDELL L. SAWYER, SR.

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. JO BONNER

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 30, 2010

  Mr. BONNER. Madam Speaker, I rise to pay homage to the memory of a 
much-beloved member of South Alabama's business community, Mr. Wendell 
L. Sawyer, Sr., of Mobile.
  Mr. Sawyer passed away on August 29, 2010, at the age of 73 after a 
battle with leukemia.
  America is made great through the contributions of local community 
leaders, either in business or in public service, who give more than 
their share to better the lives of their fellow man. Wendell Sawyer was 
just such a person.
  Born in Monroeville, Alabama in 1937, Wendell moved with his parents 
to Chickasaw in Mobile County where he grew up, graduating from Vigor 
High School.
  A hardworking businessman with a friendly manner and generous spirit, 
Wendell labored in the retail furniture business for nearly 55 years. 
He began his career with Sokol Furniture in Pritchard, Alabama. When 
the business closed in 1970, he established his own store, Sawyer 
Furniture, which became an icon in the community and the flagship for a 
chain of five locations in the Mobile area.
  Sadly, his Pritchard furniture store was lost to a fire earlier this 
year. But local residents and customers remembered Wendell as a special 
kind of businessman; a person who always treated others as best 
friends. He also helped those in need, returning the kindness that his 
community had bestowed upon him and his family for more than a half 
century.
  Madam Speaker, Wendell Sawyer was a pillar of our community and his 
loss will be sorely felt. On behalf of the people of south Alabama, I 
offer condolences to his children, Wendell ``Del'' Sawyer, Jr., Dawn 
Sawyer Cooper, John H. Sawyer, and his grandchildren, Jaclyn Sawyer, 
Wendell ``Trey'' L. Sawyer, III, Jacob Cooper, Zachary Sawyer, Cameron 
Cooper, Rachel Sawyer, Rebecca Sawyer, Kristen Sawyer and Joshua 
Sawyer, as well as his brothers and sisters, Elaine S. Sanford, Terrill 
Sawyer, Norville Sawyer, Malcolm Sawyer, and Emily S. Blount. You are 
all in our thoughts and prayers.

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